Building an Awesome Personal Brand

Your personal brand is important, regardless of whether you’re an employee of a large corporation, a solo entrepreneur, or anything in between. When you think of brands, you probably think of well-known companies like Apple, Starbucks and Nike. John Jantsch, founder of Duct Tape Marketing, defines branding as “the art of becoming knowledgeable, likeable, and trustable.”

Author of Presenting with Credibility Bruna Martinuzzi argues that your personal brand is “just as critical as your company brand.” To help create a strong personal brand that can help you attract business you want, follow the guidelines noted here. In an article originally published on the American Express OPEN Forum, Martinuzzi suggests the following brand building activities.

Increase your awareness of your identity: Figure out what distinguished you from the crowd and articulate that. Ask the question ‘what am I not?’ to determine both ends of the spectrum.

Deliver what you promise: Deliver what your brand promises—every day with every client. Never under deliver. Happy customers will share stories, therefore helping your brand to stay true.

Develop a brand mantra: A brand mantra is for you and your employees—it is an internal guideline for how to use your product or service. Use three to five words to create your brand’s mantra—the essence of your brand.

Keep your word: From being on time to meetings and conference calls, following up if you promise to help someone, and for any action items on your plate, it is crucial to keep your word. You want to be known as someone who keeps their commitments.

Reinvent yourself: Be sure to evaluate your brand every once in a while. Ways to do this include building your skills (or learning some new ones), leveraging points of difference, develop a narrative that defines how you stand out from the crowd, reintroduce yourself, and prove your worth.

If you want to spend a bit of money to help the process along, some things to consider include purchasing your own domain name or hiring a brand coach or strategist. Even if you don’t plan to use the domain name, you’ve not prevented someone else from potentially buying it or using it against you.